The premier took to Twitter a day after launching the programme at a ceremony in Islamabad and said, “We have launched our most ambitious, landmark housing policy of building five million homes in five years.”

“This will provide affordable houses for our less privileged strata of society, plus six million jobs, create demand in 40 industries directly involved in house building and attract foreign direct investment (FDI),” he added.

Speaking at the ceremony a day earlier, the premier had expressed confidence that the programme would not only provide affordable housing to the poor but also create employment opportunities in the country.

Initially, the pilot project will be launched in seven cities which include Faisalabad, Sukkur, Quetta, Swat, Islamabad, Gilgit and Muzaffarabad.

The premier had said he will take ownership of the initiative in order to ensure smooth implementation and remove any administrative bottlenecks.

Provision of five million houses equipped with all basic facilities, and regularisation of slums is the foremost priority of the government and a part of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s manifesto, he had further asserted.

On Thursday, the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) issued registration forms for PM Imran's “Naya Pakistan Housing Programme”. The premier had announced that registration for the houses will begin from Thursday with the cooperation of NADRA, which has been tasked with collecting data to identify those in need.